Archetypes in
Literature
What is an archetype?
Archetype – a recurrent image, symbol,
character or even situation that is an instinctual
expression of man’s nature and experiences that
are universal in nature.
Carl Jung
Carl Jung – Swiss psychologist and
psychiatrist whose study of the nature of the
human mind resulted in two basic concepts
that are important in examining and
analyzing literature.
1. collective unconsciousness –
unconscious/subconscious mental record of
all common human experiences (examples –
love, passion, birth, death, anger, peace, evil,
spirituality, etc)
2. archetypes – symbols which express our
“collective unconscious,” which are our
common human experiences
Objects as Archetypal Images
water
birth, death, resurrection, purification, redemption,
fertility, growth
the sea – mother of all life, the unconscious, timelessness
rivers – baptism, flowing of time, phases of life cycle
sun
creative energy, father figure, passage of time and life
rising sun – birth, creation, enlightenment, associated with the
east
setting sun – death, destruction, associated with the west
circle
wholeness, unity, oneness
serpent or worm
evil, corruption, healing energy and force, (but also,
sometimes, sensuality)
garden
paradise, innocence, unspoiled feminine beauty, fertility
tree
growth, proliferation, life, immortality
road or train
journey through life
desert
lack of spirituality, death, hopelessness
colors
red – blood, sacrifice, immorality, passion, sometimes
violent
green – growth, sensation, hope, fertility
blue – truth, security, religiousness, spiritual purity
black or darkness – chaos, mystery, unknown, death,
unconscious, evil, melancholy
white – (positive) purity, innocence, light, timelessness
(negative) death, terror, supernatural
numbers
three – holy trinity, spiritual awareness, light
four – life cycle, four seasons, the four elements (earth,
air, fire, water)
seven – most potent of all symbolic numbers because it
signifies the union of 3 and 4, represents perfect order
Characters as archetypal
images
hero
circumstances of his
conception and birth are
vague or unusual
little or nothing is known of his childhood
upon reaching manhood, he returns to his future kingdom
after a victory of some sort, he reigns uneventfully for a time
until he loses favor with gods
often meets with a mysterious death
examples - Beowulf, King Arthur
scapegoat
the hero with whom the welfare of the people of the
nation, kingdom, or tribe is identified and who must
die to atone for the people’s sins in order to return the
land to fruitfulness
examples - Jesus Christ
outcast
a figure who is banished from a social group for some
crime against his fellow man
he/she is usually destined to become a wanderer
examples - Cain, Unferth
devil figure
offers worldly goods, fame,
knowledge to the protagonist in
exchange for possession of his soul
examples - Lucifer, Satan, Hades
Earth mother
symbolic of fruition and abundance as well as
fertility
example - Mother Nature
temptress
characterized by sensuous beauty
usually involved in downfall of the hero or
protagonist
examples - the Sirens
unfaithful wife
married to a man she
sees as dull and
unimaginative
physically attracted to a
more virile or desirable
man
example - Guinevere
wise old man
represents knowledge,
wisdom, spirituality of
soul, insight
examples - Ben Kenobi,
Yoda, Merlin
Situations as archetypal
images
quest
the search for someone or some talisman which,
when found and brought back, will restore
fertility to a wasted land
the desolate state of that land is mirrored by a
leader’s illness and disability
examples - search for the Holy Grail, Ahab’s
quest for the albino whale
task
to save the kingdom, to win the fair lady, or to
assume his rightful position, the hero must
perform some superhuman deed
examples - Beowulf must slay Grendel, Arthur
pulling the sword from the stone
fall
describes a descent, usually of a hero, from a
higher to a lower state of being
usually involves spiritual defilement and/or loss
of innocence
also involves an expulsion from some kind of
paradise
examples - King Arthur, Adam and Eve
night journey
descent into earth followed by a return to light
usually, knowledge has been gained through the
experience
What movie today played with these archetypes,
almost inverting them for the sake of humor?